Seeing a box full of gold, Li Jie couldn't help but be a little stunned. Although the box a few feet square was not big, it was packed full of gold. This gift was not a light one.
When you give someone a gift, you must ask for something. What's more, the Long family has given such a heavy gift, so what they ask for is probably not simple.
Although Li Jie had already made a guess in his mind and was convinced that he could solve the other party's troubles, he still had to refuse what he should, so he deliberately looked embarrassed.
"This... is a bit too heavy. How could Zhu accept such a big gift when we meet for the first time? It's inappropriate, inappropriate."
Young Master Long seemed to have expected it, and was not too surprised when he saw Li Jie's statement. He looked calm and said.
"Brother Zhu Xian has cleansed the countryside, and now the bandits in Yuanbao Town have been calmed down. Not only the merchants in Yuanbao Town have benefited, but even our Wushan Town has also enjoyed the benefits."
"It's just a small gift, just to express my gratitude to Brother Zhu Xian for bringing some peace to this troubled world."
Li Jie raised his hand and said, "Brother Long, thank you for your praise. What Zhu did was just to earn a living in troubled times, but it was not as great as Brother Long said."
Troubled times?
Hearing Li Jie use this word to describe the current world, Master Long felt that it was a little inappropriate, but after thinking about it carefully, he found that this word seemed to be perfect.
In today's world, bandits are everywhere, there are natural disasters above and man-made disasters below. Looking at history, this scene can only be seen at the end of the dynasty.
I'm afraid the Qing Dynasty won't last long.
Thinking of this, Young Master Long couldn't help but feel a sense of sadness in his heart. After all, he was born in and grew up in the Qing Dynasty. Although the government was not repaired and disasters were everywhere, the Qing court continued to rule for more than two hundred years and still left a mark on the people.
It left a deep mark.
Especially for those with vested interests like Young Master Long, who was born into a wealthy gentry's family, if he had a choice, he would of course want his country to be safe, his country to be clean and his country to be peaceful.
Because troubled times mean that the old and the new are intertwined, and the original wealthy gentry is likely to become a poor family overnight, or even suffer misfortune, affecting the whole family.
Isn’t the Wu family a good example?
Therefore, even if it is to preserve his status and the wealth in his hands, Young Master Long hates "troubled times" from the bottom of his heart.
But the current situation does prove that troubled times have come, and everyone is in the torrent of the times. If they are still addicted to the past, then sooner or later the Long family will be submerged by the torrent of the times.
Unknowingly, Master Long's thoughts drifted to far away places.
Suddenly, he felt a little confused again.
Where should we go in the future?
Continue to struggle inside the imperial court?
It seems that the future is a bit uncertain. The Long family is indeed very rich, but when you think about the appetite of those people, no matter how rich the Long family is, they can't fill this bottomless pit.
In the past few years, the Long family has spent tens of thousands of dollars at least on officialdom, but the effect has not been particularly good, especially after experiencing this incident.
The Long family father and son suddenly realized that no matter how much money they had, they were not as powerful as the guns in their hands.
Zhou Guandai is just a low-level official with no rank, and he still controls them tightly, although the Long family can use their upper-level connections to remove him.
But Guan Zhou took him away, and Guan Wang and Guan Wu took him away.
Unless Mr. Long is the leader himself, this position is not that easy to fill.
Nowadays, the imperial court's control over the Northeast is getting weaker and weaker, and salary arrears are completely normal. Since the Wushan Town Patrol Battalion was reorganized, apart from the first payment of some salary, there has been no trace of salary at all in the future.
Moreover, the first payment of salary was insufficient, only one thousand oceans, which was not even enough to meet daily expenses.
At first, it was not that the Long family had not thought about the position of 'supervisor', but after careful calculation, they felt that spending money to support such a 'troop' seemed to be a bit outweighed by the gain.
However, when things came to pass, the Long family father and son regretted their mistakes.
If they can successfully survive this disaster, they will definitely win the position of 'controller' no matter the cost.
However, all these operations require time, and what they lack is precisely time. Qingfeng Village is like the Sword of Damocles hanging over the Long Family. If this problem is not solved for a day, they will not be able to live in peace for a day.
That's why they came to Yuanbao Town and wanted Li Jie's help at any cost.
After a while, Young Master Long suddenly woke up and immediately realized that he had lost his composure.
"Sorry, I lost my temper."
Li Jie smiled and waved his hand, and said straight to the point: "I have a straight temper and don't like to go around. Young Master Long came to visit today. I don't know why?"
Hearing such straightforward words, Master Long couldn't help but smile bitterly in his heart. He didn't expect that Li Jie didn't play according to the routine.
According to common sense, you should not refuse again and then accept the meeting gift half-heartedly.
After that, everyone was complimenting each other, and when the time was right, they would take the opportunity to propose their intention to come today.
'well.'
Young Master Long sighed secretly in his heart. Now that things have happened, what else can he do?
All I can say is!
"Brother Zhu Xian, please speak quickly. In this case, I won't be pretentious. In fact, I came here today because of your fame. I hope that brother Xian can also include Wushan Town within the scope of protection."
"Nothing else to ask for!"
Young Master Long changed his mind temporarily because he had clearly mentioned his intention of coming today before, but the other party still asked him why he came today. Obviously, the other party had seen his true request.
So, why did the other party clearly see it but deliberately pretend to be confused?
It's nothing more than trying to evade, or having a bigger goal.
The above two situations are not what Young Master Long wants to see. Therefore, he has just changed his mind temporarily and plans to put the matter on hold and plan for it in the future.
Anyway, as long as the security team includes Wushan Town within the scope of protection, the crisis encountered by the Long family can be regarded as temporary contact.
Although it does not cure the root cause, it treats the symptoms.
With this period of buffer, the scope for the Long family to move will be larger.
On the other side, Li Jie did not agree directly, but looked at the other party quietly with a smile.
Long Dashan felt silent at this situation. The other party made this gesture and it was clear that they were waiting for him to speak first. He knew very well that whoever spoke first would lose the initiative in the subsequent negotiations.
But there is no way, it will be imminent soon, and others can wait, but their family cannot wait.
Therefore, even if he was unwilling, Master Long had no choice but to offer the price.
"Wushan Town is willing to provide an insurance premium of 10,000 yuan per year, and at the same time, provide a residence that can accommodate a hundred people for training and living. Finally, all merchants will supply all the materials purchased by the security team at cost price!"